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Sky rebrands Anytime ahead of BBC iPlayer launch

Sky has today (September 6) announced that the Anytime service on Sky+ set top boxes will be rebranded as On-Demand for the launch of catch-up TV services on the satellite platform, including BBC iPlayer.

In a statement today, Sky said that the new On-Demand tab will soon be added to the Sky Guide, replacing Anytime and the internet-enabled Anytime+ offerings.

The rebranded On-Demand section will include a brand new Catch Up TV tab, enabling viewers to catch up on the last seven days of television on Sky Channels such as Sky1 and Sky Atlantic.

Following major deals announced earlier in the year, Sky viewers will also be able to access the full ITV Player and Demand 5 services, followed shortly after the update rolls out by the landmark launch of BBC iPlayer.

"You won't need to gather around your laptop to recap the week's best shows," said Sky. "They'll be available to enjoy on your TV, in the comfort of your living room."

Sky previously relied on the Sky+ personal video recorder service for customers to watch shows after they had been aired, but it will now offer a full-blown catch-up TV offering.

The rebranding of Anytime+ means that a new Sky Store tab will be added to the Sky Guide, offering a range of movies to rent on the box, ranging from the latest blockbusters to classic titles.

There will also be dedicated tabs in the On-Demand section for Showcase, along with genres such as Movies, Docs, Entertainment, Kids and Sport.

Sky has announced other changes in its latest Sky Guide update, including the addition of an Undelete option to the Sky+ functionality that "promises to make accidentally deleting a show from your Planner a thing of the past."

All deleted shows will be added to a new 'Deleted' tab and users will be able to restore them to their Planner, or delete them permanently from there.

"There's no need to worry that you'll fill up your hard disk with this new feature," said Sky. "The oldest items will be deleted automatically and permanently if you need more space for new recordings."

Other new features in the update include the Docs tab moving to the middle of the Sky Guide, enabling users to more easily locate factual TV shows.

The Help section will feature tailored menus for all Sky Guide functions, like On Demand, Box Office, Parental Settings and others.

Anyone wanting to disable the remote control functions on the Sky+ iPad app will be able to do so via the Sky Guide's Parental section.

As with all previous TV guide updates, the new software will roll out in phases based on the type of Sky box customers have, starting with the latest Sky+HD box (DRX890 model) and the Sky+HD 1TB box.

The boxes will be updated automatically in the middle of the night to avoid any major disruption.

An exact launch date for BBC iPlayer has not yet been confirmed, but anyone wanting to enjoy the new Catch Up TV service will need to connect their box to a broadband router.